not another test…

Many people will express that during their college experience they learned a lot about themselves. This is from a number of experiences you will only have in college. These experiences can be good or bad. But eventually you realize that learning about yourself is always good, right? I'm still figuring it out, so I'm hoping that's a good thing.

My personal favorite way to learn about myself and others is through personality tests. I know some of you probably rolled your eyes. Hear me out. I realize that people cannot be categorized into a limited number of personality types. Personality tests are not: "I want this 50-question test to tell me who I am." It's more of a reflective and sharing exercise. I would say you learn more about yourself and others through the process, not the actual results of the quiz.

When taking a personality test, you're faced with a questions; sometimes a lot, sometimes a little. Some of them are simple, gut-reaction questions, while others really make you think. I believe that in order to make the most out of personality quizzes, you should think about your answers. I don't mean think about your answers to have the most accurate results. I mean think about why you answered that question a certain way. Have you always felt this way or is this a new response? Why? Was this a gut reaction or something that you struggled with? Even the silly questions, like "pick between purple and green." Is there a reason you picked purple over green if neither is your favorite color? Or is it just one of those things that you can't explain? You would be surprised how the most random questions will make you realize something you never knew about yourself.

The results are not meant to be the end-all-be-all on your personality. The best part is reading the descriptions and thinking "yeah, that part is so true!" or "that is absolutely not me at all!" Either way, you are actively thinking about yourself. The best part of the results in my opinion is discussing them with other people. You see what random stuff you have in common with others. You also hear what people definitely knew about you or had no idea about. Frequently you learn things about the people around you that you would never hear about otherwise. It's one of my favorite pastimes. Seriously, if you know me, I might have asked you about your Myers-Briggs Personality Type. It brings up the best conversations.

There are literally more personality quizzes than a human can count, but here are some of my favorites to get you started. Enjoy!

The most popular is the Myers-Briggs Personality Type which separates people into 16 types based on 4 personality aspects. Google your results for some awesome articles. You can even see which Harry Potter character has your personality type!

Carrie is a senior physics major from South Carolina with a passion for astrophysics and music. You can most likely find her geeking out about physics and outer space, singing with Vocal Synergy or hanging out with her best friends.